The root causes of the attacks on reproductive rights: A Marxist analysis
Jun 14, 2022
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This podcast explores the root causes of attacks on reproductive rights, including the role of capitalism, exploitation, and intersecting systems of oppression like racism and patriarchy. It discusses the historical attempts to limit reproductive freedom and the rise of the new right's focus on abortion. The podcast also emphasizes the influence of ruling class ideas and advocates for socialism as a solution for gender equality.
The attacks on reproductive rights are rooted in the capitalist system, as the ruling class seeks to restrict birth control and abortion to ensure a larger workforce and drive down wages.
Patriarchy is deeply embedded within the capitalist system, with the nuclear family being the central unit for social reproduction, perpetuating male supremacy and hindering the struggle for gender equality.
Deep dives
Capitalism and the Attacks on Reproductive Rights
The attacks on reproductive rights, particularly the right to abortion, are not isolated incidents but rather a culmination of decades of reactionary efforts to control and limit reproductive freedom. These attacks are rooted in the capitalist system, where the ruling class seeks to restrict birth control and abortion to ensure a larger workforce that can drive down wages. However, it is important to note that not all capitalists are united on this issue, and some Democrats who represent capitalist interests also support abortion rights. The Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) further highlights the complex dynamics at play, as it both restricted abortion coverage and made profits for insurance companies and the healthcare sector. Understanding the systematic nature of these attacks requires analyzing the capitalist mode of production, the role of the family unit, and the persistence of patriarchy within society.
The Role of Patriarchy in Capitalism
Patriarchy is deeply embedded within the capitalist system, operating at both the base and superstructural levels. Under capitalism, the nuclear family continues to be the central unit for social reproduction, with women predominantly responsible for unpaid labor in the household, childcare, and elder care. While the capitalist mode of production has evolved, the basic structures and values that justify male supremacy have persisted. The capitalist ruling class benefits from the traditional family unit as it ensures the reproduction of a healthy and stable workforce. However, capitalism's reliance on the family also means that the struggle for gender equality and the end of patriarchy is extremely challenging within the current system.
The Need for Socialism and Women's Liberation
Achieving true women's liberation and ending patriarchy is impossible under capitalism, as it perpetuates patriarchal economic relationships and relies on a ruling class that promotes a reactionary agenda. Socialism, on the other hand, offers a way to eliminate economic dependence on the family unit by changing who controls and owns the means of production. In a socialist society, every individual can be guaranteed basic necessities like housing, food, healthcare, and childcare as rights. Through class-conscious governance, a socialist system can dismantle the power of billionaire bigots and advance women's equality and liberation in various aspects of society. While the battle for women's rights under capitalism remains a necessary struggle, true equality and the end of patriarchy can only be achieved through the establishment of a socialist society.
Women’s History Month is a time to recommit ourselves to the unfinished struggle for women’s liberation, and this year it is even more crucial than ever. The conservative leaning Supreme Court is considering gutting or even overturning Roe v. Wade, which would roll back women’s hard-won and fundamental right to abortion. The current attacks on abortion rights are the culmination of decades of reactionary organizing to establish extreme reproductive control by challenging birth control access, criminalizing miscarriage, undoing the right to abortion, and promoting abstinence-only sex (mis)education.
This article offers a Marxist analysis of why abortion rights are in peril today, and how the historical attempt to limit and control reproductive freedom stretches back to the very beginnings of class society. This article was originally published in the Autumn 2019 issue of Breaking the Chains magazine, titled “Not a Moral Issue.”
Read the article here: https://www.liberationschool.org/marxist-analysis-attacks-reproductive-rights/
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